Page 52 of Break Me, Daddy

With that happy if somewhat delusional thought in her mind, she pulled her phone from her pocket and snapped a pic to send him before picking up the sandwich. Then she felt the weight of all that food in her hands and nearly put it down again. But it was mostly fruit and protein, with a little healthy fat on top. The bread was carbs she didn’t need, but if she started picking it apart, Lottie would lose her mind.

So she opened her mouth and bit down into the soft, fluffy bread. And just like that, she was twelve again, hanging out at her best friend’s house without a care in the world. At the Duvall’s, nobody got onto her about track times that weren’t good enough, grades that fell just short of perfection.

It was peaceful. Quiet. Safe.

It was, she realized with a start, exactly how she felt whenever she was with Holden.

And she wasn’t quite sure what the hell to make of that.

Chapter19

Frankie

Nerves churned in her stomach as Frankie turned onto Holden’s long driveway. The ticket was still sitting there in her purse, mocking her in aTell-Tale Heartkind of way, even though she couldn’t actuallyhearit. Just knowing it was there seemed to be enough to have her attention locked on it.

She hadn’t had a really harsh punishment since before she’d walked out on Holden. And it had been so long ago, the actual memory of how painful it had been had mostly faded. But she still clearly remembered the look of disappointment on his face, the stoic way he’d lectured her, making sure she’d known exactly why he was punishing her before he’d started.

Knowing she’d disappointed him had been the hardest pill to swallow. Being a brat, pushing his buttons, those were all things she enjoyed. As were the playful punishments that often followed.

There would be nothing fun or playful about this evening, though, and that knowledge stuck in her throat like a too-dry pastry with nothing to wash it down.

“I’m home!” she called out, shutting the front door behind her as she stepped into the entryway. Even though his giant black SUV was parked at the bottom of the steps, hope still beat in her chest that he might have taken one of the other vehicles out.

“In the kitchen!”

So much for that hope.

Dammit.

Bracing herself with a deep breath, she pulled the ticket from her purse before she even made her way back toward the kitchen, so she wouldn’t chicken out when she saw him. The moment he noticed the ticket in her hand, he’d demand to see it, and she didn’t want to disappoint him further by hiding things from him. She’d asked for this, specifically told him she still needed his discipline, so she needed to be a big girl and take whatever punishment she’d earned.

He was at the stove again, cooking up something that smelled delicious and made her tummy rumble. Feeling hungry again was a good sign, one she gave herself a moment to be silently proud of.

And her stomach wasn’t the only thing feeling… hungry. There was something about the sight of him, tall and broad-shouldered with that gorgeous head of silver hair, doing something as domestic as cooking that stirred other parts of her to life.

Down girl. None of that, at least not right now.

Ignoring the spasming of her pussy, she stepped forward, holding the ticket out. “I got pulled over today.”

There. She hadn’t even tried to hide it. Surely that should earn her some good girl points.

One silvery brow raising, Holden wiped his hands on the towel draped over his shoulder before taking the thin paper from her hand and glancing down. Frankie’s heart slammed against her chest when the corners of his lips dipped down into a frown.

“Francesca Marie. Twenty miles over the speed limitandnot wearing your seatbelt? What were you thinking?”

Shit. She’d been so focused on not hiding the actual ticket from him, she hadn’t considered how to hide thereasonfor the ticket. “Umm, I guess I wasn’t. I’m sorry, I was just… distracted.”

“By?”

“I dunno,” she mumbled, jerking one shoulder in a shrug that probably seemed more defiant than she really meant for it to. “Just was.”

When he pinned her with that hard stare, it took everything in her not to shrink back from his anger. She deserved it, she knew she did, but just then all she wanted was for him to hold her and tell her everything would be okay.

“Well, I hope whatever this distraction was, it was worth it. I’m going to go get something, and then we’ll have a talk about your behavior.”

“Are you gonna spank me?” She hated how pathetic her voice sounded, how it trembled when she asked.

“Yes. And then you’re going to sit down and write lines for me so I can be sure the lesson sticks.”

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